Okto

Last updated

Okto
CountrySingapore
Broadcast area
Network
HeadquartersMediacorp Campus, 1 Stars Avenue, Singapore 138507
Programming
Language(s)
  • English
  • Chinese
Picture format 1080i HDTV
(downscaled to 16:9 576i for the SDTV feed)
History
Launched19 October 2008;16 years ago (2008-10-19)(as a standalone channel)
1 May 2019;5 years ago (2019-05-01)(as a children's block on Channel 5)
6 February 2021;3 years ago (2021-02-06)(as a children's block on Channel 8)
Closed30 April 2019;5 years ago (2019-04-30)
(as a standalone channel)
Replaced by

Okto is a Singaporean children's programming block broadcast by Mediacorp's Channel 5 in English and Channel 8 in Mandarin Chinese.

Contents

The brand originally operated as a standalone free-to-air channel from 19 October 2008 to 1 May 2019, having been spun off from the Arts Central and Kids Central strands aired by Central (whose Tamil language programming had been concurrently spun off as the new channel Vasantham). The channel also occasionally aired sports programming, which from 2014 to its closure occupied the network's prime time schedule.

On 1 May 2019, the channel was discontinued, and Okto transitioned to becoming a children's block on Channel 5, and a content brand on MeWatch. The brand was later extended to Channel 8 in Chinese.

History

In March 2008, MediaCorp announced that it would split its channel Central into two separate channels; a channel serving the Indian community, and a channel focused on arts and children's programming. [1] On 19 October 2008, the channel officially launched as Okto, alongside the new Tamil channel Vasantham. [2] [3] The name Okto was derived from the Greek numeral for "eight", as the channel was on StarHub TV channel 8 (the former EPG slot of the defunct Channel i) and Singtel Mio TV channel 108. [4]

Okto was split into two strands; children's programming occupied most of the schedule (later branded as Okto Jr.), [5] [6] while programming from evening to closedown focused on arts and cultural programming. In June 2014, coinciding with its rights to selected matches of the FIFA World Cup, the Sports on Okto brand was introduced. [7]

In 2017, arts programming was dispersed from Okto to other Mediacorp channels, in favour of expanding the nightly OktoSports block. [5] [6]

On 1 May 2019, Okto was discontinued as a television channel, with its children's programming becoming a daytime block on Channel 5 under the Okto on 5 branding, [8] [9] and a content brand on Mediacorp's streaming platform Toggle (now MeWatch); previously, Channel 5's daytime programming largely consisted of a simulcast of Mediacorp's news channel CNA. Okto's sports programming was also moved to Toggle and Channel 5. [10] Okto's channel license was subsequently surrendered to the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA). [11] This would be the second Mediacorp's free-to-air television channels to shutdown outright after City TV which was closed on 11 January 2002.

On 6 February 2021, the Okto brand was extended to Channel 8's children's programming block 乐乐窝 (Lè Lè Wō), which was rebranded as Okto尽在8' (Okto on 8)

Programming

Since its standalone channel era, Okto mostly aired English language-produced series with selected shows being broadcast in their original language. The channel aired mostly children's programmes, as well as some arts and sports programmes. The channel's target audiences were children aged 4–13, and adults aged 18–39. [6]

From June 2014 to 30 April 2019, Sports on Okto (later renamed as OktoSports) was introduced which showed sporting events live as well as recorded and delayed coverage. It occupied the nightly schedule from 9pm to closedown every night from 2017 to 2019. [5]

In September 2024, expanding upon existing agreements with the company, Mediacorp made its largest-ever acquisition of children's programmes from BBC Studios, covering 150 hours of programming (including series such as Go Jetters , Hey Duggee and JoJo & Gran Gran ) to be carried by Okto and MeWatch. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mediacorp</span> Singaporean commercial media company

Mediacorp Pte. Ltd. is the state-owned media conglomerate of Singapore. Owned by Temasek Holdings—the investment arm of the Government of Singapore—it owns and operates television channels, radio, and digital media properties. It is headquartered at the Mediapolis development in Queenstown's One-north precinct, which succeeded Caldecott Hill—the long-time home of its predecessors—in 2015; as of 2022, Mediacorp employs over 3,000 employees; a large number of them are in both public and private sector broadcasting.

Television in Singapore began on 15 February 1963. The public broadcaster, MediaCorp TV, has a monopoly on terrestrial television channels and is fully owned by government holding company Temasek Holdings. Local pay TV operators are StarHub TV and Singtel TV. The private ownership of satellite dishes was previously forbidden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channel 5 (Singaporean TV channel)</span> English television channel in Singapore

Channel 5 is an English-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp. The channel primarily airs English language programming made in Singapore, and imported programmes from other nations such as the United States and United Kingdom, broadcasting news and entertainment from a variety of genres.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channel 8 (Singaporean TV channel)</span> Television channel

Channel 8 is a Singaporean Mandarin-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp. The channel broadcasts general entertainment and news programming in the Mandarin language, including original and imported programming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channel U (Singaporean TV channel)</span> Singaporean Chinese-language television channel

Channel U is a Mandarin-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CNA (TV network)</span> Singapore English language news channel

CNA is a Singapore-based multinational news channel owned by Mediacorp, the country's state-owned media conglomerate. The network is broadcast in Singapore on free-to-air terrestrial television and Mediacorp's streaming service meWatch, and is distributed internationally via television providers in the Asia–Pacific, as well as streaming and free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) platforms

The following lists events that happened during 2004 in Singapore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CNA938</span> Radio station

CNA938 is an English-language radio station in Singapore. Owned by the state-owned broadcaster Mediacorp and launched on 2 October 1998, it broadcasts a news/talk radio format.

On 31 December 2004, Singapore's national broadcaster MediaCorp and SPH MediaWorks, the broadcasting arm of Singapore Press Holdings, agreed to merge their operations, with the merger taking effect on 1 January 2005. This merger arrangement remained in effect until 29 September 2017, when SPH exited the partnership by divesting its stake in MediaCorp.

Central was a Singaporean free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate MediaCorp.

Suria is a Malay-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp. The channel broadcasts general entertainment and news programming in the Malay language, including original programming, and imported programmes from Malaysia and Indonesia.

Daisy Irani is a Singaporean television actress, director, and producer of Indian origin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HD5 (Singaporean TV channel)</span> Television channel

HD5 was a Singaporean free-to-air television channel that was launched as the high-definition version of Channel 5. The channel was the first HD broadcast on DTT in Southeast Asia. HD5 aired 10 hours of HD-produced series each week, including movies, dramas, and original productions made by Mediacorp.

Vasantham is a Tamil-language free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate Mediacorp. The channel broadcasts entertainment and news programming targeting the Singaporean Indian community.

Oli 968 is a Tamil-language radio station in Singapore. Owned by the state-owned broadcaster Mediacorp, it broadcasts programming serving Indian Singaporeans, including music of Tamil Nadu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SPH MediaWorks</span> Former terrestrial television broadcaster in Singapore

SPH MediaWorks Ltd. was a free-to-air terrestrial television broadcaster in Singapore that operated two television channels: Channel U and Channel i, as well as two radio stations: UFM 1003 and WKRZ 91.3FM. It merged with the city-state's long-established broadcasting company, Mediacorp, in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ABC Kids (Australia)</span> Australian television channel

ABC Kids is the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's part-time channel, broadcasting shows between the hours of 4am and 7:30pm for children 6 years old and younger, including an upper preschool audience. It shares the same bandwidth as ABC Family which broadcasts outside ABC Kids' scheduled hours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channel i (Singaporean TV channel)</span> Singaporean TV channel

Channel i was a Singaporean English language free-to-air terrestrial television channel owned by SPH MediaWorks, a broadcasting subsidiary of Singapore Press Holdings.

Television in the Tamil language traces its origins back to the 1990s. Key genres of television shows encompass serials, news programs, variety shows, game shows, movies, and documentaries. Many Indian-Tamil television programs are accessible on satellite and multicultural channels in overseas territories such as Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Europe, the Middle East, and Australia. The pioneering private channel was Sun TV from India.

City TV was a free-to-air terrestrial television channel in Singapore, owned by state media conglomerate MediaCorp.

References

  1. ↑ Wong, Alicia (1 March 2008). "Dedicated Indian and kids TV channels". Today (retrieved from NLB). Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  2. ↑ "Two more to savour". Today (retrieved from NLB). 21 October 2008. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
  3. ↑ Wong, Alicia (1 March 2008). "Dedicated Indian and kids TV channels". Today (retrieved from NLB). Retrieved 24 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "MediaCorp Introduces the TV channel, okto" (PDF). Okto. 25 August 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 October 2008. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "Okto's new lineup includes children". Television Asia Plus. 15 November 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 "Mediacorp refreshes okto with new kids and premium sports content". Mediacorp.sg. 22 April 2017. Archived from the original on 23 September 2017. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
  7. ↑ "MediaCorp serves up World Cup 2014 on Sports on okto". TODAY. Retrieved 2 May 2024.
  8. ↑ Matthias Ang (20 February 2019). "okto closing down, merging with Channel 5". Mothership . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  9. ↑ Toh Ting Wei (20 February 2019). "Mediacorp to integrate okto channel with Channel 5 from May". The Straits Times . Retrieved 23 July 2019.
  10. ↑ "Mediacorp integrates English-language channels Channel 5 and okto". Channel NewsAsia. 20 February 2019. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  11. ↑ "Mediacorp integrates English-language channels Channel 5 and okto". Channel NewsAsia. 20 February 2019. Archived from the original on 20 February 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  12. ↑ "Hey Duggee heads up BBC Studios kids' content deal with Singapore's Mediacorp". C21media. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.